The 'Nothing Compares 2 U' singer - who split with DRUGS therapist Barry Herridge after 16 days of marriage in December, before reconciling and then later separating again on numerous other occasions - admitted she acts ''impulsively'' when it comes to love, but has always used relationships to ''heal a wound''.

She said: ''I don't think about these things rationally. I just go impulsively with feeling. It doesn't matter how strong a woman you are, the feminists will hate this, but we all want some big, hairy bloke to snuggle us and tell us everything's going to be grand.

''Growing up the way I did, you have this terrible longing for the normal family. You're trying to get something through a man that no man can actually give you, all the hugs and holding you didn't get, you're almost trying to heal a wound.''

The 45-year-old star - who has been married twice before - explained she has learnt some ''very hard lessons'' over the past six months, which, in addition to her turbulent love life, have seen her try to kill herself.

Sinead added in an interview with the Daily Telegraph newspaper: ''My husband is a very gentle and delicate and private kind of person, so the last six months have been really kind of awful and I've learnt some very hard lessons, and one of them is I am never going to talk in public about anyone I love.''